The Hawks Use Balance to Defeat the Bulls

Every Atlanta starter scored in double figures as the Hawks routed the visiting Chicago Bulls, 92-75, on Saturday night to snap a two-game losing streak.

Al Horford had 20 points and 10 rebounds; Lou Williams added 16 points in his first start; and Atlanta outscored Chicago, 61-33, in the second and third quarters.

The Bulls (15-11) were coming off a 110-106 victory over the Knicks in New York on Friday, while the listless Hawks (16-9) had lost, 99-80, at Philadelphia.

Atlanta Coach Larry Drew, whose career record is 100-73, had trouble explaining why his team played with so much more energy than on Friday. “That’s the thing that will have you pulling your hair out,” he said. “It was a complete opposite.”

ROCKETS 121, GRIZZLIES 96 James Harden had 31 points, all in the first three quarters, and 8 assists for host Houston, which won its third straight.

Memphis had not allowed 100 points since the season opener.

PACERS 81, HORNETS 75 David West scored 20 of his 25 points in the second half, and Indiana overcame a 22-point deficit to hand host New Orleans its 11th straight loss — its worst stretch since December 2004.

NUGGETS 110, BOBCATS 88 Kosta Koufos scored a season-high 16 points as host Denver sent Charlotte to its 15th consecutive loss. Nuggets point guard Ty Lawson sustained a left Achilles’ strain in the second quarter and sat out the rest of the game.

After the two exchanged words during halftime of Sacramento’s 97-85 loss at the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday night, Kings Coach Keith Smart benched Cousins, 22, for the entire second half and ordered him to remain in the locker room.

“What happens in the locker room stays in the locker room,” said Cousins, who has also been suspended twice this season by the N.B.A. “But I was wrong. I was wrong.”.

MAVERICKS WAIVE FISHER The Dallas Mavericks waived Derek Fisher at the request of the guard, 38, who said he was having a difficult time being away from his family in Los Angeles.

A version of this article appears in print on December 23, 2012, on Page SP7 of the New York edition with the headline: The Hawks Use Balance To Defeat The Bulls. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe